Utility tote containers have traditionally been used for a variety of applications such as mail collection, grocery boxing, and storage or transportation of household and industrial items. These tote containers have been constructed from several type of materials, including cardboard, fiberboard, and corrugated plastic.
The container disclosed in Liberty Diversified Incorporated's U.S. Pat. No. 3,982,690 was designed for the special purpose of mail collection and use in conjunction with U.S. Postal Service collection boxes--hence the tote container's distinctive slant-top appearance. Though useful for mail collection, this tote suffers from several drawbacks, predominantly the susceptibility of fiberboard to moisture and chemical stains, and the need to mold and insert a separate base tray portion. A second flaw in this container is the great quantity of material necessarily consumed in making each box. Because of the arc-like configuration of the unfolded container, the containers must be laid out on the blank sheet so as to minimize waste, which is difficult since the original material takes on a rectangular shape when rolled out and an intricate pattern of several cutting dies would be necessary to minimize the amount of unused material.
Cardboard tote containers suffer the similar flaw of lacking any resistance to water or chemical penetration, and cannot support heavy loads.
Containers formed from corrugated plastic are also known. These containers are more desirable because of their strength, durability, and resistance to moisture, chemicals, dirt, and grime. However, such containers are relatively expensive to produce and an ongoing problem has been to find ways to minimize the amount of plastic material utilized without jeopardizing the container's structural integrity. The strength of a container is directly related to the number and size of the overlapping panels, which affect how securely the container may be fastened together. Another consideration is designing the container so that the base is formed by a single panel, which increases the container's load bearing capacity.
The present invention presents a corrugated plastic utility tote that may be formed from a single rectangular sheet of material, increasing the overlapping panel area used for securing the container and incorporating a stacking shoulder for nesting several containers within each other, the entire container consuming significantly less material than prior art designs.